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Jersey Financial Crime Strategy Group

Jersey to conduct national risk assessment of money laundering
and terrorist financing

The Jersey Financial Crime Strategy Group (JFCSG) has announced its intention to conduct a national risk assessment of the threats posed to the Island by money laundering and terrorist financing.

The expected completion date of the risk assessment is May/June 2019, at which point a report and action plan will be published. The Financial Action Task Force, which sets the global standards concerning financial crime, now requires all countries to identify, assess and understand the risks posed by money laundering and terrorist financing.

The JFCSG is a multi-departmental group that reports to the Chief Minister and is responsible for mitigating the risk of financial crime in Jersey (see notes). In particular, its responsibilities involve coordinating risk assessments, reviewing and developing financial crime policies and legislation, and ensuring an appropriate risk-based application of resources.

Like many other jurisdictions in Europe, Jersey will be using an assessment methodology developed by the World Bank to help undertake its national risk assessment. The methodology is designed to:

guide countries in assessing risks in order to design a more effective, risk-based regime to prevent money laundering and combat terrorist financing;

contribute to capacity building, not only for money laundering and terrorist financing risks, but also data collection practices; and

raise awareness, trigger interaction and cooperation amongst stakeholders from government and the private sector.

In order to conduct the national risk assessment in an efficient and comprehensive manner, Andrew Le Brun has been seconded from the Jersey Financial Services Commission (JFSC) to the Chief Minister’s Department for the duration of the national risk assessment exercise.

Chair of the JFCSG, Richard Corrigan, said: “Whilst this is not the first time that Jersey has considered money laundering and terrorist financing risks, the national risk assessment will be the most comprehensive assessment of these risks to date, and its conclusions will be instrumental in taking future policy decisions. We are pleased to be working very closely with the World Bank using an assessment methodology that has already been successfully applied in many other parts of Europe, including financial centres.”

Director General of the JFSC, John Harris, added: “The national risk assessment calls for the collection of a significant amount of data from, and engagement with, the private sector. The assessment will highlight what risks exist and so will complement the JFSC’s strategic goal of becoming a more agile and risk-based supervisor.”